"In 1959, a young folklorist and musicologist, Harry Oster, traveled to the State Prison in Angola, Louisiana to collect folksongs. He made a number of field recordings while at the prison, but his biggest discovery was undoubtedly the Louisiana Blues Hall of Famer, Robert Pete Williams, a truly gifted musician and blues writer, who was serving a life sentence. Of the 9 songs on this album, four are by Williams, who sings heart-wrenchingly about prison life and being down and out. Thanks to Oster, Williams was eventually released from prison, and was able to have a fairly successful career as a bluesman in the 60s and 70s, appearing at the 1964 Newport Folk Festival and touring the US and Europe. The other musicians featured here, fellow inmates Robert “Guitar” Welch and Matthew “Hogman” Maxey, are both extremely gifted musicians, but in the words of Dr. Oster, “they are primarily the heirs of a clearly defined and standardized blues tradition, rather than innovators.” In any case, this is acoustic prison blues at its finest, and includes such detailed liner notes as well as an annotated track listing that it is equal parts musical and historical document."
Tracks:
1. Levee Camp Blues (Robert Pete Williams)
2. Stagolee (Hogman Maxey)
3. Electric Chair Blues (Guitar Welch)
4. Prisoner's Talking Blues (Robert Pete Williams)
5. Motherless Children Have a Hard Time (Robert Pete Williams)
6. Black Night Fallin' (Hogman Maxey)
7. Some Got Six Months (Robert Pete Williams)
8. I'm Gonna Leave You Mama (Guitar Welch)
9. I'm Lonesome Blues (Robert Pete Williams)
Re-issued by Doxy Music 2010
Get It Here: Angola Prisoners' Blues